Highland Fortitude (The Band of Cousins Book 5)

by Keira Montclair

  “Papa! Stop being so cruel and judgmental. Daniel saved my life. I’m not coming with you.” She could almost see the steam rising from the top of her sire’s head. In fact, if she were any closer, she was certain she’d see that narrowed gaze of his that she detested.

  With a clenched jaw, he said, “I’m not going home without you. Your mother misses you and so do your sisters.” He kept his stiff posture, his chin lifted as if to declare himself superior to everyone around him—that warrior look her mother often bemoaned. Aye, he was angry.

  Constance noticed he hadn’t said a word about missing her himself. Though she couldn’t deny that she wished to see her mother and her siblings, she’d find a way to visit them someday. Surely they would be happy to hear she’d married the man she loved.

  Her father waited for her to move, but she didn’t. He wasn’t a patient man, and it didn’t take long for him to lose his temper.

  “Constance, if I have to dismount and drag you from that horse, I will. I’m telling you for the last time to come here.”

  “Papa, nay. I’m not going home with you. I…”

  Daniel rested his hand on her arm and squeezed it. “Baron, if circumstances were different, I would ask for your daughter’s hand in marriage because I love her, but I don’t think you’d be agreeable. Whether you agree or not, we are getting married in that kirk. I’ve asked her and she’s accepted. As far as we are concerned, we are a married couple.”

  Her father’s voice came out in a bellow this time. “I will not allow you to marry some man with only one hand. How the hell can he protect you?”

  “I just told you that he saved my life. Is that not enough for you?” She bent over her horse to plead with him. Why was her father so obstinate?

  “Nay, he’s naught but a ruffian. You deserve better. But if you recall, you ruined your chances of a good marriage.”

  “Papa! Daniel, would you please take me away from here?” She had to leave before she erupted in tears because she would not give her father the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

  Her sire unsheathed his sword, which set off a chain reaction all around him. His men wielded their weapons, and so did Daniel and Will and Maggie.

  “You gave your word you would not go on the attack, Baron,” Maggie cautioned.

  “I will gain my daughter back.”

  Maggie said, “My lord, do you not think she is old enough to make her own decisions? Mayhap you should try talking with her instead of ordering her about.”

  “Of course, that would be your viewpoint. She’s my daughter and I own her. ’Tis the way of the world. She’ll do as I tell her. I am quite capable of finding her a husband once she has paid the consequences of her poor judgment.”

  “Papa, I don’t want you choosing my husband. I’ll choose my own and I want Daniel. He’s not a ruffian, he’s a Drummond.”

  “Do not turn to lies to convince me to support this marriage.”

  A rustling from behind them caught their attention. One group of men came at them from the left side, and another approached from the right. Constance whispered, “Daniel, who are these men?”

  Maggie and Will backed their horses up toward the kirk while Maggie spoke to the leader of the group approaching from the left. “You wish to pass? We’ll move out of your way.”

  The man drew his sword and stared at them with a wicked smile on his face. Constance guessed he had about fifty men behind him. She had little experience with counting men, but it appeared to be half the number her sire had.

  “Daniel?” Constance whispered. “Who is he? What does he want?”

  Daniel gave some kind of signal to Maggie, then answered her question. “’Tis Blair Lamont, and my guess is he wants you.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  If Constance could meld her body any tighter to Daniel’s, she’d probably knock him off his horse. No matter—she inched even closer. “I may have to send you into the kirk,” he whispered to her.

  “Nay! He’ll grab me. Please, Daniel. I want to stay with you.”

  Lamont finally answered Maggie. “I’m not interested in passing. In fact, we have joined with that man over there—” he gestured to the right, “—to make our requests. We’ve made a deal, the two of us. That way, we’ve enough men to fight you for what we want. We aren’t afraid of Lockhart’s men. They’re Lowlanders.”

  “And what is it you want?” Will asked as he lifted his arm to call his falcons down closer to the group, their swooping unsettling some of Lamont’s men.

  “We want two things. Give me that heart-shaped gem, and my friend will take the girl. If you cooperate, we will leave you without raising a sword.”

  Constance gasped.

  “Daughter, give it to him,” her sire said. “Your life is worth far more than that silly stone.”

  To her surprise, she could see worry in her sire’s face. The façade of the stone-cold warrior began to crack, showing glints of the caring sire she remembered from childhood. Had the mother abbess been right? Had his threats all been for show?

  He’d ordered her to give her beloved mother’s stone away, but she wouldn’t do it. She’d keep it safe and return it to her dear mother when she had the chance.

  Constance patted her gown, searching for the feel of it inside the pocket, but she couldn’t find it. She whispered to Daniel, “’Tis not there.”

  “Lass, you gathered your things in haste. I’ve no doubt ’tis there, but you’ll not give it to that bastard.”

  Lamont searched Daniel’s face. “Nice to see you again, Damien. Or is that your real name? I should have known you were involved with the Grant bastards. My gut told me not to trust you.” He snickered as he stared at Constance and Daniel. “You do have taste. She’s a bonny one. Lass, give me the stone and I’ll take my men away, and I promise not to hurt your friend there. If you don’t give it to me, I’ll kill you both and then search you for it.”

  A loud voice interrupted him. “Like hell you will. You promised to stay and fight with me,” the leader of the group to their right barked.

  “Who is that?” Constance whispered.

  “I don’t know,” Daniel said. “I’ve not seen the man before.” He then asked the question they were all thinking. “What do you want with the lass? Who pays you?”

  “Jean MacDole pays me. And she pays me well. Now hand over the girl or I’ll kill you.”

  Constance gasped again. “Why does that cruel woman want me? Poor Rose. What a mean-spirited person her mother is.” She had no idea how Jean MacDole was able to give orders to anyone. The cruel woman had admitted to two murders, and everyone had seemed to believe she was headed to prison.

  “I don’t know, lass, but we’ve plenty of other troubles just now,” Daniel whispered, rubbing her arm. He turned his horse around so they faced the intruders, their backs now to her sire.

  “Gil, when you get her, you’ll hand over that stone as we agreed,” Lamont said to the man across from him. Now the two fools were acting as if the rest of them weren’t even there.

  “Aye, we did, until you decided to back out of your part. Mayhap I’ll keep the stone for myself.” Gil looked quite pleased with himself, while his men snickered behind him.

  Maggie glanced at Constance and nodded her head, indicating the time had come for her to take the stone out of her pocket. Speaking only loud enough for Constance and Daniel to hear, she said, “Pull it out of your pocket and show it to all. ’Twill buy us time.”

  “And then you must dismount,” Daniel said. “I want you in the kirk. This will turn into a battle.”

  Constance climbed down with Daniel’s help, and her sire called out, “Good girl. Now walk straight over to me and I’ll take you home.”

  She ignored her sire and searched her pocket again, all the while making her way toward the church. If she were close enough to run inside, she would be safe. She glanced up at Maggie and then shifted her gaze to Daniel before she announced, “I can’t find it. I must have lost
it.”

  Her sire groaned, but Lamont and Gil both shouted in unison, “Liar!”

  Lamont, the fury in his face growing, shouted, “You have one minute to find it and then I’ll cut your hand off, strip you, and find it myself.”

  Out of nowhere came another group of riders. Daniel had no idea how they had crept up on the group so quietly, though the multitude of men and riders gathered around the kirk did make quite a din and the night was dark enough to provide some cover.

  “You touch that lass and you’re a dead man.” Logan Ramsay’s voice rang out over the land. Daniel’s father rode beside Uncle Logan, and dozens of Ramsay and Drummond guards were gathered behind them.

  Daniel noticed his brother, David, behind his sire. Apparently, his brother had gone home to bring more men to assist him. He couldn’t help but smile at this unexpected development. He motioned for Constance to continue toward the kirk, and Maggie, still on horseback, rode beside her as protection. His cousin was an expert with the bow, and he had no doubt she’d find a hiding place where she could use her weapon once Constance was safely inside.

  As Will moved over to join the Ramsay group, Daniel took a moment to assess his surroundings. Lamont was now in front of him, and his sire and uncle had taken up a position directly to his right. On their right, the Band of Cousins had emerged and stood ready to fight, then Constance’s sire was next in the circle, followed by Gil, who had come at the request of Jean MacDole, the witch who’d tried to sell her own daughter to the Channel of Dubh.

  Constance looked so tiny against all those warriors and the horses. She was almost into the kirk, so he maneuvered his horse to put him in a position to fight Gil first. His sire’s group could easily handle Lamont. At this point, he was hoping Constance’s sire would order his guards to take up arms after Gil’s men.

  War whoops echoed into the night, and the place erupted into a full battlefield. Gil and his men charged toward Daniel, forcing him to look away from Constance.

  He swung his sword, using his left forearm as support while he controlled his horse with his knees, something they’d practiced over and over again in the lists. He took Gil out with two swings, then knocked the next two off their horses with one wide swipe of his blade.

  Arrows sluiced through the air around him, finding their targets as he knew they would. Gavin and Gregor had learned from Aunt Gwyneth, who never missed her mark. He had a quick moment to assess the area before he was swept up in the next wave of the attack.

  The Ramsay and Drummond warriors were making easy work of Lamont’s men, though he did not see Blair Lamont on horseback or among the fallen men. Just as he’d hoped, Lockhart’s men had joined his cousins in attacking Gil’s men, so their numbers were dwindling quickly.

  One warrior came straight at him, his arms raised overhead to deliver a killing blow, but Daniel caught him square in his belly before he could manage it. The next fighter bellowed but barely lifted his sword before Daniel caught him in his side, forcing him off his horse.

  Men came at him and at him, an endless number of fighters and beasts until he thought he could stand it no more. “Constance. Where is Constance?” he shouted, desperate to know if she’d made it to safety.

  Connor yelled, “Lamont just grabbed her.” He drew up alongside Daniel and said, “Go. I’ll take care of these fools.”

  Connor could swing a sword faster than anyone he knew, so he gladly turned around and rode hard to the back of the church. Maggie pointed off in the distance as she mounted her own horse.

  Constance was on horseback with Blair Lamont.

  What the hell was he to do?

  He flicked the reins and flew after Lamont, setting a frantic pace. His horse loved competition nearly as much as he did.

  With a certainty he’d never before possessed, he knew one thing.

  Blair Lamont was a dead man.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Daniel chased Lamont until he thought he would be forced to give up. His horse was panting and losing steam, and Lamont’s was racing forward as if a fire had been lit beneath him, but someone must have been looking out for them, because Lamont’s horse took a tumble just before it leaped over a burn. Daniel got close enough to reach for Lamont. He grabbed his tunic with his Treun and tugged him clear off the horse. To his surprise, the appendage flew off, landing far away from him.

  He didn’t care. He had to save Constance, with or without Treun.

  The bastard fell to the ground with a grunt. Constance screamed, rolling off the horse as Lamont fought to gain his feet again. She hadn’t fallen far, so Daniel focused on Lamont, who had already found his feet.

  The man drew his sword and shot straight at Daniel, who had jumped down from his horse to fight him. Blair had to be upset because he was swinging wildly, like a lad who’d just learned how to hold a sword.

  Daniel parried with the man until Lamont was heavily fatigued.

  Then, because he would just as soon bring the man in alive so they could question him about the Channel of Dubh, he said, “Drop your sword and I’ll allow you to live.”

  Blair did drop his sword, but then he attempted the stupidest thing possible. He pulled out a small dagger and reached for Constance. Daniel’s strong wife scratched and kicked like the fighter he knew her to be. Daniel dropped his weapon and charged toward them, intent on pushing her away from the man so he could finish him, but he slipped and caught Lamont’s dagger in his thigh.

  Daniel roared like a wolf on a mountaintop. He grabbed the bastard by the throat, choking him, but he lost his grip. Lamont stood up and stepped back, then immediately turned and lunged for Constance. Fear and rage painted Daniel’s vision. He was too far from his sword, so he pulled out his dagger and plunged it straight into Lamont’s heart. The bastard gasped, staring at him, then tried to clutch his arm before he crumpled to the ground, dead.

  Daniel reached for Constance, but his leg gave out. She was at his side, holding him, trembling, kissing him furiously. “Daniel, Daniel, I was so afraid.” His hand came up to touch her cheek, and it was covered in blood. His blood.

  He just stared at it, his eyes blurring a bit. He settled on the ground, confused, wondering why he could no longer stand up.

  “Daniel, oh my…Daniel…” She stared at his leg, her eyes wide with horror, then reached inside her pocket for something. “I found it. I couldn’t find it before, but now I have. Here, this is supposed to be magical for wounds.”

  “What?” Daniel couldn’t make any sense of her words, but he grasped her upper arm, grateful he’d managed to save her from Lamont. He hadn’t needed Treun to protect her, after all. “Now we can marry. I love you, Constance.”

  “Oh, Daniel. There’s too much blood. Oh, what shall I do?” She fell to her knees and placed the gemstone against his wound, trying to wipe the blood away with her gown. “Please Daniel, please don’t die. I couldn’t bear it.”

  There was a tree not far from them, and Connor appeared from behind it. He dropped from his horse to assist her, followed by Maggie.

  Daniel caught the shock in Connor’s eyes, and knew he was in bad shape from that look alone. Maggie was a bit better at hiding her concern, but she immediately jumped into action. “We need to stem his bleeding.”

  “Connor, help me up. I’ll be fine,” Daniel said, the expressions on everyone’s faces scaring the hell out of him.

  “Nay, you’ll not get up, Daniel. You’ll stay there until we stem the bleeding, then you’re going straight to a healer. We’ll see which one your sire recommends.

  Daniel couldn’t understand all of Maggie’s words, as if some came to him and others didn’t. His eyes drifted closed only to jerk open at another sound. “It hurt really bad, but now…”

  Maggie said, “We need to keep him awake. Daniel, stay with us.”

  Daniel’s gaze caught Maggie’s again, but he couldn’t recall what she’d just said. “I wish to marry Constance right away.”

  “You will as soon as we stop
the bleeding, Daniel. You have to be able to stand next to your bride, do you not?” Maggie whispered, her voice falling off at the end as if she were choking something back.

  His eyes drifted shut again, but another bellow awakened him.

  Maggie screamed, “Papa?”

  He glanced at the panicked expression on his cousin’s face. When had he last seen her look this concerned? And why was Maggie calling him Papa? He’d ask her as soon as he closed his eyes for just a wee bit longer.

  “Help me, Connor,” Constance said, eager. They moved him over to the tree so he could lean against it, but Daniel would not let go of his wee, fierce wife.

  “Don’t leave me, Constance. Promise me.” His hand still gripped her arm.

  “I promise, Daniel, if you promise not to die on me.”

  ***

  Constance was suddenly possessed by a need that consumed her. Gavin, Gregor, and Braden had joined them, so she turned to the Band of Cousins and said, “Braden, go find the priest. I wish to marry Daniel right now.”

  Daniel smiled at her and whispered, “Good idea. I love you.” His eyes closed and she became frantic, fearful that he would not wake up.

  Connor handed her a linen he’d found somewhere. “Here, Constance. Use this on his leg.”

  “This is too small to soak up the blood,” she said, hating how her voice shook. She needed to be strong. “What do I do with it?”

  “Push on it,” Connor said. “Here, allow me. I’ll get it to stop bleeding.”

  Constance leaned down and kissed Daniel. ‘Please wake up, my love. I need you to wake up. You must be able to agree to our marriage.”

  She glanced at Maggie and said, “Here, hold this gemstone over the wound. ’Tis said it holds magical properties for healing.”

  Maggie nodded and settled the stone near the wound on his leg, the blood now slowing a bit from Connor’s compression.